Citrix’s project to put a new spin on disaster-recovery and business-continuity routines is nearing fruition with plans to go into beta-testing with customers this month and commercial availability due in the third quarter of this year.

Codenamed Project Kent, the service is intended to provide a complete workplace replacement and information service for companies hit by emergencies such as transport strikes, freakish weather or terrorist activities. It includes remote connectivity capabilities and a communications layer that will enable workers to ascertain the well-being and status of their peers and managers via web, voice, email or SMS.

In an exclusive interview with IT Week, Citrix CEO Mark Templeton said Kent will go into “full-fledged beta” in the next two weeks.

“Most disaster-recovery dollars have gone into keeping the machinery working but Kent will offer a complete information system for working from home with a
communications and alerting system that will let users ask for, or offer, help,” Templeton said.

“It recognises that all the other stuff is more important than working [hardware].”

Customers will be able to simulate scenarios and plan accordingly so that, for example, a workplace PBX could automatically route calls to a home or mobile
number in the event of a snowstorm. Users could also change their profiles as situations dictate.

The service will be fronted by IBM Global Services and branded as Virtual Workplace with Citrix providing the software engine.

“It’s like insurance,” Templeton said. “You don’t want to use it but it’s good to know it’s there.”